The Cal Poly Observatory was built in 1966 and financed by the state. The cement dome and wooden shed were built by Cal Poly professor Dr. Lewis Hammitt and student Tim Hoagie who volunteered their labor to make their vision of a high-tech observatory come true. Fun fact: the dome was built as a senior project!

Prior to the observatory, Cal Poly only had a small, portable telescope. When it was built, the public observing shed housed a 6-inch refracting telescope, and the dome was home to a 12-inch reflector. After a few years, a larger telescope and some photographic equipment was bought for the dome. By 1970, a total of $10,000 had been invested in the observatory, which translates to about $89,600 in today's value!

Today, both the shed and the dome house 14-inch Meade LX600 ACF telescopes. The telescope inside the shed is used exclusively for public observing nights, while the dome telescope is used for student research, as well as the main teaching instrument for the ASTR 444 Observational Astronomy class. Check out the Cal Poly Academic Catalog to learn more about the astronomy courses offered during the school year.